I received a few perique blends today because I wanted to try them. As I understood it, perique is an Akkadian blend of fermented tobacco with a fig/stewed fruit flavor. This piqued my interest.

About halfway through a bowl of Haddo's Delight I began to experience what can only be described as a HIGH.

I'm still coming down from it. It was not pleasant. Dizzy, lightheaded, tunnel vision and a bit of nausea.

I've tried several blends till now and have never had anything like this to happen. What gives? Anyone else have a similar experience?

PaxChristi!
BubbaJack

“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.”
― C.S. Lewis

You just enjoyed a bit of nicotine toxicity. It could have been a lot worse -- new smokers and high-nic blends often result in a ride on the Tilt-n-Hurl.

My first experience with nicotine overdose was also Haddo's Delight. It was a looong time before I was ready to try it again.

Perique has a lot of nicotine, and Haddo's has a lot of perique. In addition, Mr. Pease added "a little bit of air-cured ribbon" to provide "a bit of extra strength." Tee-hee!

Here's what you do: Eat first; do not smoke this on an empty stomach. Enjoy small bowls. Don't put this in your big pipe. Smoke it slowly; keep it cool. A hot pipe delivers more nic, and faster.

As soon as you start to feel a bit of nicotine buzz.... set the pipe down. There is an optimum level for your tolerance, and you will find it pleasant as long as you don't exceed it.

Perique is a Cajun tobacco, from Louisiana. It is fermented, semi-anaerobically in wooden barrels. I find the flavor of straight perique to be spicy and earthy -- not at all fruity. The Haddo's blend does have some "stewed fruit" flavors, along with the spice. A little bit of perique goes a long way -- it is usually a "condiment" or "spice" added to blends of virginia tobaccos. The fruity flavors are likely from the virginias.

Last edited by Del on Fri Oct 21, 2011 7:36 am, edited 1 time in total.

"Utter frogshit from start to finish." - Onyx

"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." - Eph 4

Im beginning to feel my toes again and the color has come back to the beds of my fingernails.

This was a real shock, as I have tried quite a few different types. Tonight was my first try at anything with perique in it.

When I realized that my head was whirling I did put it down. I wondered at first if this was an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of an underdone potato. But then it hit me, it was the pipe. Duh...

I will most assuredly take your advice and go small next time Del.

What about Barbary Coast? Is that as strong?

PaxChristi!
BubbaJack

“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.”
― C.S. Lewis

It's rumored that Aleister Crowley, who went by the pseudonym "Oliver Haddo," smoked straight Perique tobacco soaked in rum, and his smoking habits formed the influence for this blend. Because Perique is saturated with nicotine, the good folks at G.L. Pease gave this one its own fair share.

Treat Haddo's with care, but don't be afraid to go back to it. It's one of my favorite blends when smoked slowly.

Although, I am strongly tempted to get some rum and soak some straight perique in it and then give it a whirl....

Rusty tells me this has been done.

PaxChristi!
BubbaJack

“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.”
― C.S. Lewis

BubbaJack wrote:Although, I am strongly tempted to get some rum and soak some straight perique in it and then give it a whirl....

Rusty tells me this has been done.

Crowley insisted that this was the best blend for inducing hallucinations.

In general, we do not recommend that anyone imitate Aliester Crowley in any way.

"Utter frogshit from start to finish." - Onyx

"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." - Eph 4

Oh my. I re-read Rusty's note. I had gotten as far as Michael Haddo, the character in Maugham's story and didn't process beyond there. Perhaps the buzz had not yet slackened.

Now I am understanding why this was called Haddo's Delight.

Mercy. My head hurts this morning.

PaxChristi!
BubbaJack

“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.”
― C.S. Lewis

Give it a few more chances ... it's one of my favorites, and I think few blends on the market benefit more from aging than Haddo's.

It IS a little potent in the nicotine department, LOL. Believe it or not, though, there are plenty of products on the market that are far, far stronger -- Petersen's Irish Flake, 1792, both versions of G&H Dark Flake, Coniston Cut Plug, Billy Budd, and many of the rope tobaccos.

Just follow Del's advice and you should be fine -- the man knows what he's talkin' about.

When I first tried Haddo's, it was the worst tobacco I'd ever tried. I'm talking taste, not strength. I managed to smoke about half the tin and still hated it. It is the only tobacco that I've ever thrown away rather than trading.

A year or two later, I was given another tin of Haddo's. I said what the heck, I'll try it again. Man, it was the best stuff ever. Smooth, tasteful, strong. After I finished that tin, I bought a 16 oz tin. I'm not sure my taste changed that much between the first tin and the second tin and I'm pretty sure now, based on other experiences, that my first tin was bad. So if your tin tastes good, but is just strong, give it a while and go back to it in small portions as Del suggests. I believe you will come to appreciate it quite a bit.

And Barbary Coast is similar but maybe not quite as strong, or maybe it is - I'm so used to them now that the strength is inconsequential and I don't notice it enough to compare them. I know I do like Haddo's better.

Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. Isaiah 55:6,7 ESV

Steverino, I think my experience has been the exact opposite of yours. When I first tried it, I really enjoyed it. I went through quite a few 2oz tins of it before buying one of the big 8oz tins. I now have that same 8oz tin from 05 and I'm only about half way through it. I'm not sure if I got burnt out on it, or if I liked it better young. I may give it a whirl tomorrow. I haven't gotten through an entire bowl in a while, though.

I'm considering getting a new tin to see if I have a different reaction. I'm finding recently that there are several blends that I really prefer right off the shelf -- maybe this is one (Old Joe Krantz and Bayou Night are also better with less age, in my opinion).

I didn't find it to be overwhelmingly strong, and I like it, yet it has never become a favorite. Just not my favorite taste, even though I'm a Virginia and Perique fan. I have 4 ounces of Haddos (or slightly less!) and hit it once in a while. It should last me a while.

OK fellas, you gotta know I'm a lightweight. 2 benadryl and I sleep for two days. 2 beers and I sing songs I don't even know, and well!! I've only been smoking a pipe for a short while and I only indulge in a bowl every other day or so. I have no tolerance. None.

This apparently also applies to the nicotine in perique.

PaxChristi!
BubbaJack

“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.”
― C.S. Lewis

I told Bubba that ol' Haddo's is but a 6 of 10. Just a smidgen past suburban friendly 2-car garage medium. Nobody trips on that. But if he has a Perique sensitivity then it could seem like a 12 of 10.

I chuckled looking at the 'first responders'. TNLP the Haddo's-induced Rosebush decorator & Del who thought strong was Haddo's.

Haddo's is not a strong tobacco. GL Pease doesn't really blend strong tobaccos though the plugs may be stronger than his mixtures. Until the plugs Robusto & Cumberland were pretty much the top of the power spectrum in his blends and that's not saying much because they're not strong either. His blends are very easy going, friendly, and unlikely to make one sick. But it seems that even so ....

You're out of the woods
You're out of the dark
You're out of the night
Step into the sun
Step into the light

BubbaJack wrote:OK fellas, you gotta know I'm a lightweight. 2 benadryl and I sleep for two days. 2 beers and I sing songs I don't even know, and well!! I've only been smoking a pipe for a short while and I only indulge in a bowl every other day or so. I have no tolerance. None.

This apparently also applies to the nicotine in perique.

it takes time and experience to develop and understand your personal tolerance for nicotine.

That's okay. Pipe smoking is a hobby, and you have lots of time!

Remember my confession -- that Haddo's Delight was my first encounter with nicotine poisoning? I know what you are going through! that was 3.5 years ago for me....

The time goes fast, and the learning is fun and quick. You'll discover your own taste, as well as develop your appreciation and tolerance for nicotine.

You may be a 'lightweight' -- or you may find that your body adapts quickly and even develops a sort of immunity to nicotine. My son (who posts here occasionally as Cigarson) enjoys high-nic blends like Peterson Irish Flake. He has a constitution of iron.

"Utter frogshit from start to finish." - Onyx

"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." - Eph 4

Del wrote:You may be a 'lightweight' -- or you may find that your body adapts quickly and even develops a sort of immunity to nicotine. My son (who posts here occasionally as Cigarson) enjoys high-nic blends like Peterson Irish Flake. He has a constitution of iron.

Tolerance does build and you want to watch that and not rush up into 9's & 10's. But tolerance seems to be related to metabolism. It's certainly not related to size or mass. GL Pease is not a small guy and he describes himself as a nic-weenie. I can just imagine turning oneself green while blending. "Yep, it's my job to go green."

You're out of the woods
You're out of the dark
You're out of the night
Step into the sun
Step into the light

BubbaJack wrote:OK fellas, you gotta know I'm a lightweight. 2 benadryl and I sleep for two days. 2 beers and I sing songs I don't even know, and well!! I've only been smoking a pipe for a short while and I only indulge in a bowl every other day or so. I have no tolerance. None.

“I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.”
― C.S. Lewis